Nikon 18-200 VR (mkI) lens creep

After many years of suffering lens creep with my 18-200 VR Mk1 and finding it getting slightly worse recently, I decided enough was enough and something had to be done.

I contacted Nikon, who politely said that it’s simply “the combination of optical design and the natural force of gravity“. I asked if there was anything that Nikon could recommend or attach as a fix. Nikon’s response was “unfortunatley there is no upgrade or attachment that can be recommended by Nikon.”

So I decided to google and quite quickly found LENSband on eBay. These small rubber rings are available for a wide variety of lenses – you need to buy the version/size specific to the lens with the problem.

And the result?

It’s a very simple – but effective idea! The band simply sits across the section of the lens that moves (to zoom) and the part that doesn’t. Zooming takes a little more pressure – but not much to be honest. And when you point downwards all creeping has gone. They are also very cheap (£6 approx incl p&p). I’m very pleased with mine and keep it on the lens all the time.

Available in several colours, for multiple lens manufacturers (Nikon, Canon, Sigma, Tamron, Olympus, Hasselblad & more), LENSband have a store on eBay in the UK. Or from Amazon in the US (see below).